One of our goals at the Giles County Historical Society is to manage our collections like a 21st century museum. The impressive exhibits that you see when you visit larger museums like the Smithsonian or museums in Roanoke or Richmond are only half of the story. Behind the scenes, their collections not currently on display are all carefully stored in archival boxes on archival shelving in climate-controlled spaces. They have large staffs who are responsible for creating exhibits, maintaining collection records, accepting donations, and keeping all artifacts in the best possible condition.
At the Giles County Historical Society, as in many museums in smaller communities, we have several part-time employees and volunteers trying to manage the collections in a similar manner, but on a much smaller scale with a much smaller budget. Collections management has been an ongoing project for the Historical Society. We’ve been the recipient of grants from the Community Foundation of the New River Valley, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the American Association of Museums to purchase collections management software and hire consultants to help us understand how to improve our processes.
The first phase of our collections management project has been to organize over 10 years of collections paperwork and match the paperwork with the corresponding objects in the collection. Each object is then photographed and information about the objects entered into the computer. As we work through this process we will also be applying for grants for additional archival storage, updating our collections management policies and forms used for donations, and creating new exhibits. The collections management project is ongoing and likely will not be complete for several years. Remember, the next time you visit the Giles County Historical Society, that there is a lot going on behind the scenes!
At the Giles County Historical Society, as in many museums in smaller communities, we have several part-time employees and volunteers trying to manage the collections in a similar manner, but on a much smaller scale with a much smaller budget. Collections management has been an ongoing project for the Historical Society. We’ve been the recipient of grants from the Community Foundation of the New River Valley, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the American Association of Museums to purchase collections management software and hire consultants to help us understand how to improve our processes.
The first phase of our collections management project has been to organize over 10 years of collections paperwork and match the paperwork with the corresponding objects in the collection. Each object is then photographed and information about the objects entered into the computer. As we work through this process we will also be applying for grants for additional archival storage, updating our collections management policies and forms used for donations, and creating new exhibits. The collections management project is ongoing and likely will not be complete for several years. Remember, the next time you visit the Giles County Historical Society, that there is a lot going on behind the scenes!
No comments:
Post a Comment